Religion of Sports

Religion of Sports is a media production company and full-service studio headquartered in Los Angeles that makes documentary, unscripted and, more recently, scripted content exploring the intersection of sports, science and spirituality. The company's premise is that sports function like a religion — community, mythology, pilgrimage and the pursuit of human potential — and its programming focuses on the stories behind elite athletic performance rather than statistics or game coverage.

The studio maintains dedicated teams for production, creative direction and post-production (its finishing arm is branded GOAL POST), allowing it to take projects from creative conception through final delivery. ROS Labs operates as a multidisciplinary creative studio within the company handling branded, unscripted and experiential work. Beyond video, the company produces podcasts, including a companion podcast to the Man in the Arena docuseries and original investigative series such as Crushed and False Idol.

Its catalog includes Religion of Sports (DirecTV), Tom vs. Time, Kobe Bryant's Muse, Shut Up and Dribble, Stephen vs. The Game, Simone vs. Herself, Greatness Code, Man in the Arena, McGregor Forever, Searching for Shohei, In the Arena: Serena Williams, Destination NBA: A G League Odyssey, The Sessions: Draymond Green, and more recent titles including Simone Biles Rising, Made for March, 5-Star and Alex vs. ARod.

Founding story

Gotham Chopra, a filmmaker and son of author Deepak Chopra, co-founded the company in 2017 with NFL players Tom Brady and Michael Strahan around the idea that sports serve as a form of religion — a source of community, mythology and shared belief. Chopra grew up in Boston in a religious immigrant household surrounded by sports culture and has described using the language of sports as a way of identifying himself. The founders initially raised $10 million to develop content across multiple platforms.

Business model

The company operates as a media studio, developing and producing documentary, unscripted, scripted and audio content that is licensed to and distributed by streaming platforms and networks, alongside branded content work for consumer brands.

Content is produced for and distributed via third-party platforms and networks including Netflix, Apple TV+, ESPN/ESPN+, Showtime, Paramount+, HBO, Prime Video, DirecTV, Fox Sports and NBC; the company has also produced branded content for Under Armour and Nike. Following its Series B the company stated an intent to invest in content and build owned IP rather than operate purely as a work-for-hire production company.

Traction

The company reports more than 250 million views and listens of its content and has won five Sports Emmy Awards, including one for Man in the Arena, described as the first such win for ESPN+. Its podcasts Crushed and False Idol were both nominated for 2022 Ambie awards for Best Sports Podcast.

Latest developments

In 2023 the company acquired Main Event Media and Jiva Maya, and its current slate includes series distributed via Paramount+, HBO and Netflix such as Simone Biles Rising, Made for March, 5-Star and Alex vs. ARod. Co-founder Gotham Chopra published a book, Religion of Sports: Navigating the Trials of Life Through the Games We Love (Simon & Schuster).